Alice
by Future Starkid Member
Summary: We've seen Jefferson, we've seen the Queen of Hearts, but we haven't seen Alice. So here she is, Alice! In the Enchanted Forest and Storybrooke. How does she tie in to all that goes on within OUAT? Read and find out... May contain spoilers on certain episodes and certain things. AU, Rumbelle, Emma/Neil, Archie/Alice, Snowing. T for later language and possibly later scenes.


**_Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon A Time, ABC does…I wish I did…if I did I wouldn't be on Fanfiction. …It's sad really, but there it is…_**

**_Real quick Author's Note: I started this before I heard anything about Once Upon A Time in Wonderland, and this is highly AU. Some of the timelines are a little mixed up, but it's mostly in the fairy tale world._**

**_I feel like I'm forgetting something…_**

**_Oh well. Enjoy!_**

* * *

_Today was just a normal day at the market for Alice. She had a few copper pieces, but nothing more. She wasn't really going to be buying anything. She never did._

_She saw her first target. A man who looked so proud of himself, his head should've been the size of a balloon. She nonchalantly walked toward him like it was a completely normal day. When she got close enough, she pretended to trip, and fell into him, slipping her hands into his pockets as she did so. She slipped his money pouch in her sleeve and took her hands away._

"_I am so sorry!" she apologized, probably more than she needed to._

_He brushed it off. "That's quite alright. It's not every day a beautiful lady runs into you."_

_Once again, Alice apologized. "My mind must have just…" she trailed. She was staring at a white rabbit hiding in the bushes. "…wandered off." She finished._

_It wasn't a normal rabbit. It was wearing a man's coat, for one. And secondly, it was pointing to a watch, as if saying "you're late!"_

"_My dear lady? Are you alright?" The man asked._

_Alice snapped her head back towards the man. "Yes! Yes of course. Sir, if you'll excuse me…" he nodded and Alice chased after the rabbit into the woods._

_At small intervals, the rabbit would turn to ensure that she was following it. She ran as fast as she could and nearly tripped several times over roots that thought it funny to poke up above the ground and trip unsuspecting travelers._

_The rabbit rounded a sharp corner and disappeared. Alice came to that corner and looked around frantically for the rabbit. All she saw that would've worked for an escape was a rabbit hole that was bigger than normal. She got down on her knees and poked her head slightly into the rabbit hole._

_Alice knew she should get back and pick a few more pockets, otherwise her brother would be very angry, but she had a feeling in her gut that this was important. And her gut feelings were never wrong. Ever._

_Alice stuck her head a bit more into the rabbit hole. It didn't look like it ever ended. Just then, she felt a furry hand on her backside, pushing her in, and down the rabbit hole. As she fell, it was dark. But it was warm and inviting at the same time. She landed with a hard thud on a floor in a brightly colored room. The walls looked like the inside material of a hat._

_She looked around her. There were many doors and different things that she assumed were portals of some kind, presumably leading to other places. The one that drew her attention was a mirror. She walked up to it and tried to touch it. Her hand went straight through it._

_She quickly drew her hand out. She glanced around the room once more, took a deep breath and entered the mirror. Where she came out, was a beautiful garden._

"_See? I told you she was the right Alice!" The rabbit she had been following said with a triumphant smile on his face._

"_Just because she went through the right portal? That. Proves. Nothing." A small dormouse huffed and crossed her arms._

"_Well, just-" said a boy._

"_-Take her to Caterpillar." Said another boy who looked just like the first one._

"_I was gonna say that."_

"_Well I said it first."_

"_Well I was thinking of saying it first."_

_Alice decided to intervene before the two boys could start killing each other. "Umm…where am I?"_

_The white rabbit only seemed too eager to answer. "Why, you're in Wonderland."_

~\/\/~

"Bye dear! I'm going to work!"

"Bye Archie!"

I waited for his car to be completely gone and around the corner before I grabbed my coat and headed out the door to start my own car. Why he wanted a tea party this early, I would never figure out.

Once at my destination, I parked my car in the long driveway and walked to the door. I knocked. "Password?" A voice from my past.

I let out a breath of exasperation. "Really? A password? Let me in before I cut you into pieces with a fork." I had an extra emphasis on the 'k' of 'fork.'

The person behind the door laughed. I could practically see a smirk toying with his normally expressionless face. He swung the door open and let me though. I stopped just in front of him. "Glad to have you back." He paused. "Alice."

I drew in a sharp breath. "No one calls me that anymore. I suggest you take a leaf from their book and do the same."

I started down the hall, knowing exactly where I was going, though I had never been inside this house before. Just follow the sounds of shattering china. I chuckled.

As soon as I entered the kitchen, I ducked, knowing exactly what would come next. "You're late for tea!" and a piece of delicate china smashed against the wall behind me.

"March! Please, stop throwing! Those are some of my best pieces of china!" Hatter joked.

I took a seat at my usual spot at the end of the table, folded my hands and smiled. "Actually, I'm not the one who's late. That would be Ches." The three already seated got a glum look on their faces. "What? What happened to Ches?"

"He doesn't remember."

"Hatter, you can't be serious?"

"It's Jefferson. And yes. I am. He doesn't remember."

"But at least you do, Alice!"

"Actually Mally, it's Allison now." I looked at the woman who was a dormouse in a past life. She turned her nose up at me. She had never liked me much anyway.

"It's so good of you to come back though." The man who was once the White Rabbit said.

"Thank you Rabbit."

"It's William here. Mally is Doris. And March is Ryan."

"Thank you. So. Jefferson. Why so early?"

"We have things to discuss."

I looked around at all of them to see what they were thinking. "No. No!"

"But why not? If we all remember, we should all try and take her down!" Mally shouted with her fiery spirit.

"Exactly. She's the one who trapped us here. We need to get home." Rabbit rationalized.

"I just need my hat to work." Jefferson was staring at a random spot on the table. I don't think he even realized what he said.

"We need to break the curse!" Mally shouted.

"Break the curse!" March copied. Even when not a hare he was a raving lunatic.

"Does Lydia remember?" Hatter's question was hardly heard throughout the loud room.

I shook my head. "No."

"How do you know?"

"I call her Lydia sometimes and she doesn't come. But then I call her Perdita and she comes running."

"Dalmatian, right?"

"Yes. Archie's is named Pongo. So I guess it makes sense for her to be named Perdita."

"Archie?" Hatter smirked.

I rolled my eyes. "Jiminy, whatever."

"So you'll help us then." Rabbit's eyes shined brightly

"Sorry. But I'm not going to. I mean, I want to, but she's too powerful. The moment she realizes that we all remember she's going to come after each and every one of us. Hatter, just because you have your hat won't stop her. Mally, just because you were a great warrior even though you were so little won't stop her. Rabbit, just because you have rational mind won't stop her. March…just because you're so crazy it's funny at times won't stop her. Just because of whom my brother is won't stop her. There's no use fighting!" I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. It's not that I didn't want to fight. It's that I knew it was futile.

"What do you expect us to do? Wait for the Savior?" Hatter's eyes were dark.

"That's what I'm going to do!"

"That's six years, Alice." Mally practically spat my name.

"Six years!" March mimicked. "Spoon." He grabbed his spoon and was mesmerized in it. I couldn't help but slightly smile at the memories.

"We've already waited for twenty two." I countered.

Hatter met my eyes. "If you're not going to help us then I suggest you leave," He sneered. "Allison."

I drew in a breath and let it out. That was the signal that I was no longer welcome. "I suppose I should." With as much dignity as I could muster, I stood up and walked to the door. I turned. "I'm sorry. I really am. But it's already hard enough to keep the truth from my husband. I don't need to be at secret meetings while I'm supposed to be at work. What if he stops by to visit one day and I'm not there? How would I explain it? I really do wish I could help you." I took a deep breath. "Good luck."

With that, I showed myself out of Hat—Jefferson's enormous mansion. I got into my car and drove to my work space. The small building that was a private investigation service right across the street from Granny's Diner. I parked in my spot and went to unlock the door.

I set my things down and hung my coat and realized I hadn't actually eaten anything. I opened up my desk and put out the "Back in 5 Minutes!" sign. I walked across the street to the Diner. I went up to the counter and ordered Peppermint Tea and a bagel. Within five minutes I had my breakfast and was waiting to cross the street.

My phone rang. I struggled to get it out of my pocket without dropping anything. On the last ring, I answered it. "Hopper Private Investigation Services. This is Allison Hopper speaking. What can I find for you today?" I asked in my most cheerful voice. Considering earlier events, it was a bit hard.

"Your office." Came a voice I knew well on the other end.

"Mr. Gold, I'm crossing the street as we speak."

"Good." He hung up.

I rolled my eyes. He didn't even bother being polite. I often wondered if that carried over from the other world. I pushed the door open and set my tea and my bagel on my desk. I glanced at Lydia's—no, Perdita's food and water. Plenty full.

I turned to face my client. "How can I help you today Mr. Gold?"

"I need you to find someone for me."

I raised my eyebrow. "Does this person have a name?"

"Yes. But he probably no longer goes by that name." There was something a bit odd about Mr. Gold this morning. He seemed like he was out of his element. Like he wasn't comfortable talking about this.

"How do you expect me to find him if he doesn't have an actual name that you know of? And why not just go to the sheriff?"

"Because. The sheriff deals with the law. Private investigators help others find things or solve problems that they don't want to go to the law for. Besides. You always find what you are looking for." He gave me that knowing look as if we were sharing an inside joke. An inside joke that I did not find the least bit funny.

I sighed. "Since you don't have a name, I'll need a possession of his, or a picture."

"I have a picture." He pulled out a folded piece of old looking paper. He unfurled it to reveal a beautifully drawn portrait of a young boy. A young boy I knew well.

Mr. Gold handed the picture to me. I looked down at it. It really did capture my nephew perfectly. The detail was insane, as if someone had spent years on it just to make it this perfect. I took a deep breath as I prepared to give Mr. Gold an answer he wouldn't like. "I can run the picture, but, I might not get a perfect match since its hand drawn and not an actual picture. Plus, I might not even get any results unless he has a criminal record or he has yearbook picture for a specific school that you knew he went to."

Mr. Gold's nostrils flared. "Just. Find him." he turned and left.

I took a deep breath and leaned back in my chair. "Where have you gone Bae?"


End file.
